RISING star Claire Hooper created a stir last year with a show
that relied on pre-recorded sound and her considerable gifts for
physical comedy. Faced with the possibility of losing her voice
after discovering a growth on her neck that needed surgery, she
performed an entire show without speaking.

This year's performance is comparatively conventional - she
talks - but in many ways equally seductive. Using being stuck in a
Sydney hotel room watching Kylie's Showgirl tour on TV as a
springboard, she tackles the potholes encountered on her path from
children's theatre to doing stand-up, including hosting suburban
male strip shows, appearing on Rove Live and touring with
Puppetry of the Penis.

It's a tightly written, engagingly performance, climaxing with
an extraordinary dance routine interpreting comments thrown out
from the crowd. There's plenty to suggest Hooper's skills will
translate well in her new gig on ABC TV's The Sideshow.